Clear as Crystal
by RadarWithCheeze
Summary: Living a mundane life as the teenage daughter of a radio technician and a botanist, Crystal didn't think that the move to Johto would disrupt her simple daily routine. However, when an errand for the local professor, a Chikorita, and a pair of Trainers throw her into a life of adventure, she will be forced to rise to the challenge of this strange new region-or get left behind.


_Over the last few weeks I have been playing Pokémon Crystal version. This is just a fun dramatization of the events, part of it being how I pictured the story unfolding while playing, part of it being creative writing. That being said, it is still a story being put out into the public eye, and no amount of fluffy words placed in front of the body of work can shield it from that. I expect, actually, I hope, that this story receives a healthy dose of criticism, deserved or undeserved (But most likely deserved; I am an amateur). With all that out of the way, I hope you enjoy the story, and I hope you have a wonderful day._

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As the sun rose over the horizon, natural light cascaded the sleepy town of New Bark, Johto. New Bark was small, only housing a few dozen people in just a handful of houses. The quietness of the town slowly began to fade as the residents began to start their day. In addition to the sound of doors opening and conversations beginning, the sounds of wild Pokémon from the forest encompassing the town began to fill the air.

To anyone used to the bright lights and bustling wildlife of the Johto region, the sunrise in New Bark was always a joyous occasion. However, to a native of the rainy Laverre City of the Kalos region, Crystal found the bright light emerging from her window and on to her previously asleep form quite annoying. She groggily sat herself up, wondering why it was so sunny in Laverre town. She looked around at all the unpacked boxes and remembered that she was no longer in Kalos. She got up, pulled the shutters over her windows, and began to make her way back to her bed, determined to steal a few more hours of sleep. Her plan was halted by a voice calling from the first floor of the house that she had recently moved into.

"Crystal! Breakfast is ready!" The voice of her Mother stopped her in her tracks. She wondered if her mother had heard her steps from the first floor. She looked to the door, then to her bed. She began to slowly move towards her bed, hoping that her Mother had no idea that Crystal was awake, and was calling to rouse her from her slumber. As she reached the foot of her bed, her Mother called out again.

"Crystal, I know you're awake! Now get down here before this gets cold." Crystal sighed in defeat, and moved to go downstairs. She paused, looking at one of the only unpacked pieces of decor. A picture frame hung from her wall, the only thing other than her bed that she had cared to unpack. In the picture frame, Crystal stood with two other girls, all of them seemed to be laughing while enjoying a modest birthday cake. Behind them hung a homemade banner, reading 'Happy 16th! We'll miss you!' Crystal sighed, feeling as if the events in the frame were so far away, even though the picture itself is less than a week old. She pushed past her reminiscence and walked down the stairs.

On the first floor of the house, the situation was similar to the second floor. Unpacked boxes took up most of the empty space, the only thing not carefully packed in a box was some photos, potted plants, and kitchen supplies. The supplies were currently in use by an older woman with black hair who was in the process of frying pancakes. As Crystal walked down the stairs, the woman turned to face her daughter.

"Darling, there you are." She said with delight. "And here I was thinking you were ignoring me."

"Ignore you? Never." Crystal's mother handed the young girl a plate of pancakes. She took the plate and sat down on a box, taking a bite out of her pancakes.

"What's the occasion?" Crystal asked her mother, mouth full of pancakes.

"What do you mean?" Her mother asked "We just moved in to a new house. Isn't that reason enough to have a nice breakfast?"

"Yeah, but pancake mix is expensive, and as you said, we just moved into a new, two story house. If anything, this should be cause for rationing, not celebration." Crystal responded to her mother, already on her second pancake.

"Don't stare a gift horse in the mouth." Her mother responded. "Your Father's new job got us this house at a discount, and taking into account my new job in Goldenrod, we'll be able to afford more luxuries than before." Crystal wanted to argue the practicalities of splurging on something as trivial as breakfast, but decided to take her Mother's explanation and move on.

"Speaking of your new job," Crystal started, "You excited to get to work with flowers for money and not just a hobby?" Her mother placed the frying pan in the sink and began eating her plate of pancakes, noting Crystal was already on her third pancake.

"I'm always excited when I work with botany ." Her mother said. "Hey, I heard they begin hiring at seventeen. Maybe in a year's time, we could work together! You always enjoyed maintaining my garden with me." Her mother suggested to her daughter.

"That'd be wonderful." Crystal said joyfully with the remains her third pancake stuffed in her mouth. "Now all I gotta do is find something to do for the next year." She said with a slightly more dejected tone of voice as she put her plate in the sink. Her mother stared off into space for a moment, as if trying to recall something, before her face lit up. "Oh! I almost forgot. Professor Elm stopped by when we were moving in yesterday, and he asked for you to come by his lab today." Crystal turned to her mother with a quizzical look on her face. "Professor Elm? Who's that?"

"He's a Pokémon professor! Just think about it: a potential internship with a Pokémon professor! It would look wonderful on a job application. And, it gives you something to do other than lay in your bed all day." Her mother said with a delighted expression on his face.

"Wait, like right now?" Crystal asked. "It's like six in the morning! Don't you need help with all these boxes?"

"Maybe later. Even if you didn't have something to do, I need to go to Goldenrod City. The flower shop called me in earlier than I thought they would." Crystal's mother got up, having finished her pancakes, and began to walk to her room on the first floor. "Get dressed and go see why the Professor wants to see you, and come let me know before seven. I have to leave in an hour." As she turned the corner, she called over her shoulder "And make sure you fix your hair. It's a mess." Crystal put a hand on her head, feeling her teal hair sticking up in all directions.

About fifteen minutes later, Crystal stepped outside of her house, wearing clothing more suitable for walking outdoors. After taking a deep breath in an attempt to wake up further, she began walking through the small town of New Bark. She asked her neighbors for directions to Professor Elm, as in her excitement, her mother had neglected to mention where the Professor lived. Her neighbors, an older couple, kindly pointed her in the right direction. After thanking them she walked to the building that she now knew was Professor Elm's laboratory. She stood outside of the building and took a deep breath, as she was nervous in front of new people, especially people important enough to be called professor. As she moved to enter the building, she was stopped when she heard a quiet voice coming from the side of the lab. She slowly peeked her head around the corner, trying to be quiet. At the side of the lab, staring through a window, stood a young boy, around Crystal's age. He wore dark clothes and had a full mane of red hair, heavily contrasting Crystal's lighter clothing and blue hair.

"So this is Elm's lab…" the boy said to himself. Crystal thought he was kinda weird, but this is the first person around her age that she had seen so far. Without her previous group of friends with her, she essentially had no friends other than her mom. She figured if she had to live in this new town, she would at least try to make some friends, no matter how weird they looked.

"Hey there!" Crystal stepped out from behind the corner, waving to the boy. She began to introduce herself, but was cut off by the boy.

"What are you looking at?" He said rudely. Crystal was taken aback by his response. Everyone else in this town seemed so nice. She took a step forward. "I just wanted to-hey!" She was cut off again by the boy bumping into her as he suddenly moved to pass her. "Mind your own business." He said as he quickly walked off. Crystal just stood still for a moment, watching him pass. She was confused as to why he was so mean. Everyone else was nice here, and no one spoke like that back in Laverre town. Was it something she had done? All she said was hi. After a moment she shook herself out of her thoughts and continued into the lab.

Walking into the lab, Crystal looked around in amazement. Various pieces of equipment were strewn around the lab. Crystal understood none of it, as she had never seen this much technology in one room. After gawking at the lab for a moment, one of the lab assistants looked up from his work and noticed Crystal.

"Hello." The assistant said. "If you're looking for Professor Elm, he's near the back." The assistant then returned to his work. Crystal tried to thank him for his help, but he said it so fast that she couldn't get a word in. She moved towards the back of the lab, approaching a man with short brown hair and glasses. She waited for a moment, but when it was clear that he hadn't noticed her, she softly spoke up.

"Um...hello?" She leaned her body so that she would be in his vision.

"What?" The man she presumed to be Elm looked up from his computer, frantically looking around as if Crystal had startled him. After a moment, Elm regained his composure and looked at Crystal.

"Yes, how may I be of assistance?" He asked, speaking faster than most people Crystal had met.

"My name is Crystal. Me and my parents recently moved in, and my mom said you were asking for me." Professor Elm stared at Crystal. After a few seconds, Crystal suspected that he wasn't looking at her, and was just staring off into space.

"Uh, Professor?" She asked, snapping Elm back to attention. "Ah yes, Ms. Crystal!" He said, carrying on as if nothing had happened. "I've been expecting you! I was hoping you could do me a favor." Elm asked Crystal.

"A favor?" Crystal asked. They had just met. She thought this was a little weird, but she preferred the Professors odd enthusiasm over the redhead's brash nature.

"Yes. My friend and colleague lives on route 30, just past Cherrygrove. He goes by the name of Mr. Pokémon. He just discovered something, and I was hoping you could retrieve it. I would have one of my assistants get it, but were all so busy." Professor Elm said, trying to speak faster than his lips could move.

"Uh, yeah. Yes. I can help." Crystal said. She had trouble keeping her composure. She had pictured him as someone sophisticated, more akin to someone like Sycamore, back in Kalos. She had never met the Professor, but had seen plenty of news caster videos.

"Wonderful! However, travelling on foot by yourself to route 30 can be quite difficult, with all of the wild Pokémon running amok!" Elm moved over to a cluster of cabinets and began rummaging through equipment haphazardly stacked on itself.

"I, uh, don't mean to overstep, but I thought you just said that all your assistants are busy." Crystal asked with a puzzled expression on her face.

"All of my human assistants, Ms. Crystal." Professor Elm stood up from his equipment, holding an odd cylindrical case about the length of her forearm. He thumbed a button on the side, and the top of the case opened, revealing two balls, painted red and white with a button marking the middle.

"Are those Pokéballs?" Crystal asked with disbelief. Pokeballs were tools of trainers and gym leaders. She had only seen a few trainers before. Some of her neighbors back in Kalos had Pokémon, but they didn't use Pokéballs.

"As a matter of fact, they are." Elm began to explain. "On the left, I have Totodile, a water type, and on the right, I have Chikorita, a grass type. I would have a fire type, but Cyndaquil was already chosen by another one of my assistants, so it's not a choice for you." Almost every interaction she had today had surprised her, but this threw her for a loop.

"A choice for me? Like I get a Pokémon?" Crystal asked.

"Yes. Like I said, travelling alone to route 30 can be dangerous alone, so please, choose one." Elm set the case on a counter and returned to his work. Crystal looked at the two Pokéballs. A million thoughts raced through her mind. She had never thought that she would be the lucky recipient of a Pokémon. This morning all she could think about was wanting to stay in bed, but now, she couldn't imagine sitting still. Even now, she found it hard to keep herself still enough to decide between these two Pokémon. Water, or grass? After a moment, she gingerly reached out a hand and grabbed the ball on the right. Crystal looked at it for a moment, took a deep breath and pushed the center button. In a flash of light the top of the Pokéball opened up, the light taking form on the counter, molding itself into a small creature, turning green as the light faded. The creature stood on four legs and had a small leaf sticking out of its head. It opened its eyes, looking up at Crystal.

"H-hi." Crystal bent down slightly to get closer to the Pokémon. "My name's Crystal. Your name is Chikorita?" She asked shyly. She hadn't had much experience with Pokémon. Not from a lack of want, she just never had the opportunity to. The Chikorita looked up at her, blinked twice, then chirped in what Crystal thought was delight.

"You choose Chikorita?" Elm stepped away from his computer and addressed Crystal.

"I think so." Crystal said, looking at Elm for a moment before turning her attention back to Chikorita.

"Judging by the look on her face, she seems to have chosen you too." Elm said. "Now, before you leave, make sure to say goodbye to your mother. Wouldn't want to forget something important in the spur of the moment." Elm began to turn back to his work, before stopping and fishing something out of his pocket. "Ah, yes, I almost forgot." He chuckled to himself at the irony as he handed a small device to Crystal.

"It's called Pokégear." Elm explained. "It's an essential tool for trainers. It's a phone that has a map feature built in. You can upgrade it with other functions, I just haven't had the time."Elm patted himself down. "I do believe that is everything, Ms. Crystal. Take care on route 30, I hope to hear from you soon." Elm turned back to his work. Crystal had seen some trainers in the past, so she had an idea as to how a Pokéball worked. She pressed the center button again and pointed it at Chikorita. A red beam shot out at Chikorita, turning her into red light that went back into the ball. Crystal looked at the Pokéball, realising that Elm had called her a Pokémon Trainer. She knew she wasn't one, but it still felt pleasant.

"Professor Elm,"

"Hm?" Elm looked up.

"Thank you."

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"Mom, I'm home." Crystal called out into her unpacked house. After a moment, Crystal's mom walked into the room.

"That was fast. What did the Professor want?" Crystal's mom had changed into more formal clothes, covered by an apron with the logo of a flower shop.

"Well, I haven't done it yet. He wants me to run an errand to route 30, grab something from a friend of his." Crystal explained to her mother. As she said it, her mother could tell that she was distracted by something.

"No errand could make you as nervous as you are." Her mother said. This surprised Crystal at first, but she realized that her mother probably knew her better than she knew herself.

"What do you mean? I'm not nervous." Crystal said. "It's just, well...he gave me something to help me along...:" Crystal trailed off, not sure how to tell her mother what Elm had given her. She had no reason to be nervous, but the whole situation she found herself in was taking a lot of her attention, and didn't leave much of it available for anything else.

"What'd he give you?" Her mother said as she began rummaging through boxes, "The last time I've seen you this nervous was when we moved. I can't imagine anything that he could give you that would top the move." Crystal took a deep breath, and removed the Pokéball from her bag.

"I could think of a few reasons…" Crystal held up the Pokéball for her mother to see. When her Mom turned to face her daughter, she dropped what she had fished out of the box.

"He gave you a Pokémon?" She questioned, her face lit up with a level of enthusiasm that Crystal had seldom seen in her mother, even when she worked with botany. "This is a perfect opportunity for you, darling!"

"Perfect opportunity? What do you mean?" Crystal asked. While it was nice that Elm referred to her as a Pokémon trainer, she knew that this was no more than a simple errand for the local Professor. After this, She might get to keep Chikorita, but only so she could continue to run errands for Elm. Sure it was nice, but not on the level of 'perfect opportunity' that her mother had described it as.

"Going on a journey! I did something similar at your age. It's how I met your father." She looked out the window, her face conveying an emotion that could only be described as nostalgic remembrance. "Me going out and exploring the world is the reason I am who I am today." She turned to her daughter. "I assume you'll be setting off after your errand for Elm. Just remember: you'll always be welcome here, and you have my phone number, so don't be afraid to call." She gave her daughter a look of affection. "Wait here, I need to go grab you some things before I leave." Crystal's mom turned and went to her room, the sounds of her shuffling through boxes followed shortly after.

Crystal stood, dumbfounded, the Pokéball hanging limp in her hand. A journey? Ever since she was a little girl, she had wanted to go off into the wilderness, with nothing but her Pokémon at her side, but she had since grown up and moved on from what she had been told were childish notions by all the adults she had come into contact with. But now it seems that her mother was telling her that this childhood dream of hers was coming true, and that this dream was not so childish after all. Part of her wanted to laugh at the absurdity of it, and just go back to bed, waking up to discover that it was all a pleasant dream. The other part of her, however, didn't want to go to sleep, didn't want this dream to end. She looked at the Pokéball in her hand. Even if this was a dream, why not run with it? Her mother came back into the room, a small, red device in hand.

"I want you to have this." her mother handed her the device. The device was flat and square, bearing a resemblance to a Pokéball. As Crystal grabbed it, the middle portion extended, revealing a blue screen. "This was my Pokédex, a tool for recording data on Pokémon. I got it when I was your age. It should have all the data from my journey from when I traveled in Kalos." Her mother gave her another affectionate smile. "It's filled with my experiences. Now go and fill it with yours." Crystal was surprised. She didn't know her mother was a Pokémon trainer. And from what her mother had said, it sounded like her father was one too. Even with these new insights, Crystal still had so many questions How do her parents go from Pokémon trainers to a botanist and a radio technician? She wanted to ask this question, among others, but almost immediately, one question seemingly moved past her brain and out her lips all on her own: "Mom, what happened to your Pokémon?" This question seemed to catch her mother off guard, a brief look of sadness, which quickly changed to a look of content. "A long story," Her mother said, "For another time." She regained her composure and placed her hands on her daughter's shoulders, squeezing gently. "I have to leave for Goldenrod. I trust that you'll be fine on your-" she stopped herself, continuing with "I trust that you'll be fine. After all, you're not alone. And remember, you have a house key, and Goldenrod is in the center of Johto, so it will always be close by. Your father and I are here for you. Don't hesitate to call." Crystal's mother embraced her in a hug. Crystal hugged her mother back, breaking it off after a few long seconds.

"Thank you, Mom." Crystal looked at her mother . "For the vote of confidence. I needed it." Crystal's mother smiled at her daughter. "Anytime, darling."


End file.
